Ryanair Chase

Ryanair Chase information is basic for a middle distance race at the Cheltenham Festival. The Ryanair Chase is a Grade 1 race over two miles and five furlongs. Ryanair Chase information is crucial because the race requires of horses four-years-old and older to carry a basic weight of 11 stones and ten pounds.

Ryanair Chase Prize Money

The Ryanair Chase is one of the most popular races of the whole Cheltenham Festival because Ryanair Chase prize money is huge. Ryanair Chase prize money is in the region of a quarter of a million pounds with over half of the amount going to the winner of the race.

The Ryanair Chase

The Ryanair Chase was first run in 2005 when new races were scheduled into the Cheltenham Festival as a result of a fourth day being added to the event. The Ryanair Chase was first classed as a Grade 2 race before it was bumped up a class.

The Ryanair Chase traditionally comes before the World Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival. Therefore, there is big interest in the Ryanair Chase because some of the horses on display could go on to become World Hurdle champions in the future.

Ryanair Chase Sponsors

There have only ever been two Ryanair Chase sponsors in the history of the race. The Daily Telegraph sponsored the race in 2005 before Ryanair sponsored the race from 2006 up to now.

Ryanair Chase sponsors have often competed with each other intensely because of the relationship the race has with the World Hurdle. This means a greater level of exposure which sponsors are more than willing to pay for.

Ryanair Chase Champions

As the race has only been around since 2005, the list of Ryanair Chase champions is quite short. There are two Ryanair Chase champions that hold outright titles in the race.

Ruby Walsh is one of the Ryanair Chase champions because he has ridden two winners in the race (Thisandtheother in 2005 and Taranis in 2007). Paul Nicholls is the other of the Ryanair Chase champions as he trained both horses on these occasions.

World Hurdle Warm Up

The Ryanair Chase loses a lot of uniqueness as its own race because it's considered as the World Hurdle warm up at the Cheltenham Festival. There is a unique atmosphere of quiet buzzing and anticipation while the Ryanair Chase is being run.

This is because the huge crowds at Cheltenham see the World Hurdle warm up as the calm before the storm. The majority of the crowd start planning their bets and jostle for position before the big race of the day on day three. This is known in some circles as the Cheltenham Shuffle.

Ryanair Chase Title Holder

The current Ryanair Chase title holder is a horse called Albertas Run. Champion jockey and Grand National title holder Tony McCoy was on board when Albertas Run won for trainer Jonjo O'Neill at the Cheltenham Festival in 2010. Albertas Run will be the first horse to win the race two times if any future wins arrive.